Issue #8: The New Vital Sign
Good morning. It's Wednesday, August 24th. Have you recovered from yesterday’s metabolic fitness tests (Issue #7)?
One of our Thrive25 readers took on the 1.5 mile challenge and shared his awesome results of crushing the run with a 7 min average pace! Great work!!
“My rule is to break one sweat a day.”
Today we’re switching gears to build our strength.
**Be sure to bookmark this week to come back to as you’ll want to reassess in 3, 6 or even 12 months as you continue your journey to Thrive.
Starting at some point before age 40, the annual decrease in our muscle strength.
You don’t have to be Dwayne Johnson, but…
You go to the doctor and they take your temperature, your pulse, your blood pressure, but they probably didn’t measure your strength.
Yet more and more studies point to a clear connection between strength and long-term health - going so far as to call it the “new vital sign."
It's essential to keep our strength as we age - plus, strength training may be just as effective as metabolic training when it comes to weight loss.
Grip Strength
Grip strength has become more and more common as a measure of health & longevity.
An often cited study from The Lancet suggests grip strength is a biomarker of aging. The results of the study are pretty crazy:
“There can be no doubt that grip strength predicts future all-cause mortality across a range of populations”
“Grip strength is a more powerful predictor of cardiovascular outcomes than systolic blood pressure (the big number)”
This doesn’t mean that all you need to do is squeeze a grip strength device while sitting on the couch watching a meaningless NFL preseason game.
But they can be part of an active workout routine, or for those days when you can’t fit in a full workout.
The minimum grip strength should be at least 57 pounds for men and 35 pounds for women.
One way to measure grip strength is the dead hang.
Test #1 - Dead Hang
Find a bar to support your weight that’s high enough for you to fully extend arms and legs without touching the ground
Place hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart
Relax shoulders, neck and lower back - focus on breathing
**Try to build up to hang for at least 1 minute and shoot for 2 minutes
NOTE: The exercise should help alleviate any inflammation/pain in your back or shoulders. If you find that you need to release due to pain in the body before you lose your grip, stop immediately and be sure to contact a medical professional
Alternative - if you aren't feeling the Dead Hang, you can also try to do a Farmer's Walk. Try to walk for 2 min while holding dumbbells that collectively are 50% of your body weight (So if you weigh 160 pounds, then each dumbbell is 40 lbs for 80 lbs total).
Quad Power
A study of over 1,000 individuals in Japan showed that over a 5-yr period those with the strongest quads had a 75% lower all-cause mortality rate and 88% lower rate of heart disease.
We've got 2 tests to assess quad strength and endurance.
Test #2 - Ruffier Squat Test
Start by taking your resting heart rate (HR1)*
Then do 30 squats in 45 seconds (it’s pretty quick, but try to go low and keep good form)
Take a seat and measure your heart rate (HR2)*
Wait 1 minute from end of squats and measure heart rate a final time (HR3)*
Now it’s time for some math:
Score (RDI) = [ (HR2 - 70) + 2 * (HR3 - HR1) ] / 10
Who are we kidding - here’s the online calculator.
Check out your results:
*If you don’t have a heart rate monitor, take your pulse for 15 seconds and multiple by 4
An alternative test takes me back to the days of high school basketball practice - the Wall Sit.
Test #3 - Wall Sit
Make sure your back is flat against the wall
Place feet shoulder distance apart and walk out about 2 feet (length from your hips to your knees)
Slide down wall until your legs are parallel (90 degrees) to the ground (knees directly above your ankles)
Hold position while keeping your core tight
When done, you can avoid injury by sliding your back up the wall to stand
More details on proper form.
This test doesn’t have a scientifically backed set of results, but the general guidelines suggest that holding the wall sit for at least 60 seconds, with a stretch goal of 90-120 seconds, demonstrates advanced leg strength.
Speed Read
Health & Longevity in the News
Longevity in Venture Capital: According to JME Ventures, longevity investing is only getting started and these companies will soon infiltrate all aspects of our lives.
Follow The Money: With so much money going into “longevity” investments, there’s now even a Longevity Stock Index. The index is built similar to an ETF and includes companies with an exclusive focus on extending healthspan or lifespan.
National Cycling League?: The NCL will be the first of its kind professional league with 1-2 KM races in major cities in the U.S. with rules that promise to make these the most exciting bike races in the world. (Fitt Insider)
Meditation Frustration: How to meditate when you just can't sit still from the experts like Dan Harris co-author of “Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics” and founder of the mindfulness app Ten Percent Happier.
Wednesday Weights
We're amping up the power this week.
New Feature - check out the video courtesy of Connor J. Obrochta completing today's entire workout!
Click HERE to view the workout on our YouTube channel.
Workout and video courtesy of Connor J. Obrochta. Check out all of Connor's workouts on Playbook!
Wednesday Brain Teaser
River Crossing Puzzle: Parents with two children - a son and a daughter - came to a wide river. There was no bridge there. The only way to get to the other side was to ask a fisherman if he could lend them his boat. However, the boat could carry either only one adult or two children.
How does the family get to the other side and return the boat to the fisherman?
Bonus Puzzle: A Petri dish hosts a healthy colony of bacteria. Once a minute every bacterium divides into two. The colony was founded by a single cell at noon. At exactly 12:43 (43 minutes later) the Petri dish was half full.
At what time will the Petri dish be full?
Credit: Brainden
**For answers, scroll to bottom of newsletter.
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**River Crossing Answer: First go the children. Son comes back, and father goes on the other side to his daughter. Then daughter goes back to pick her brother up and they both go to the other side to the father. Son comes back to give the boat to mother who goes to the other side (to father and daughter). Daughter jumps in and goes to her brother so they can both return to their parents. Daughter gets off and son gives the boat back on the first side of the river to the fisherman, who goes on the other side. There the daughter jumps in and goes to her brother to take him back to parents where she (where the whole family meets at last) returns the boat to the fisherman. The boat crossed the river 13 times.
Bonus Puzzle Answer: The dish will be full one (1) minute later at 12:44.
Why Thrive25
We’re 40-something dads that felt our bodies and minds start to slow down and we’re not ready for that. We found too much information on every subject. So we started Thrive25 to transform what we’ve learned into something useful for the rest of us to spend just 3-5 min a day to optimize our health & longevity.
This newsletter is for you and we truly value your feedback. Never hesitate to reach out to us at team@thrive25.com.
To health!
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The information in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and may not be appropriate or applicable based on your individual circumstances. Thrive25 Labs LLC does not provide medical, professional, or licensed advice. Please connect with your healthcare professional for medical advice specific to your health needs.